Robin Sparks | Robin Sparks

Author Archive | Robin Sparks

Famous Authors Who Self-published

Tweet When I recently posted on Facebook that it is easier today than ever before to become a published author, a friend disagreed. She wrote, “It might be more possible to get something out there more easily nowadays. The problem is getting people to know about it, getting a store to carry it (chains won’t), […]

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“Write and Sell That Book!” workshop in Ubud, Bali Oct.1-6, 2010

So ready to write your book and get it out into the world? Join us in Ubud, Bali the week before the Annual Ubud Writers Festival for all the tools you’ll need to get your book written, published and in the hands of as many readers as possible, fast, and actually earn money doing it.

Snag one of the 20 spots available asap and we’ll see you in Bali in October!

http://www.oneworldretreats.com/ubud_bali_yoga_retreat_robin_Joanna.php

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Love this story!

A vacationing American businessman standing on the pier of a quaint coastal fishing village in southern Mexico watched as a small boat with just one young Mexican fisherman pulled into the dock. Inside the small boat were several large yellow fin tuna. Enjoying the warmth of the early afternoon sun, the American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish.

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My “Stop Doing” New Year’s Resolutions

“…Suppose you woke up tomorrow,” Collins says, “and received two phone calls. The first phone call tells you that you have inherited $20 million, no strings attached. The second tells you that you have an incurable and terminal disease, and you have no more than 10 years to live. What would you do differently, and, in particular, what would you stop doing?

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A Path Runs Through It

The snake (which btw looked just like a long leaf on a palm frond,) dropped the frog and raised his head to look at me, so I jumped back to wait until he had slithered away into the tall grass.

Just another day in Paradise.

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Food of the Goddesses

One of the best things about living in Bali is the food. Food that is unprocessed, healthy, whole, organic, delicious, and cheap. Indeed, as I sit here typing, a few feet away on a palm tree hang at least a dozen coconuts, ripe for the picking ($1 if I ask Made to cut one down for me and hatchet it open in my kitchen), and to my left there are a bunch of Alice in Wonderland sized papayas dripping from a tree.

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From Bali to the Grand Bazaar – Thoughts on Patience and Stuff

True it is not the regular Stuff of Americans I collect – i.e the car and house in the suburbs and all that goes with it, but the ethnic Stuff, mostly textiles and handmade items that reminds me of the heart and soul of the places in which I have lived and loved. I not only buy Stuff I want to have with me, but as gifts for others. What I can’t take stuff into my luggage, I ship. Or I convince family and friends to store the Stuff I leave behind. Is it possible to be a Bedouin and be addicted to Stuff?

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Bali Lite – In the News Today

“In Kalimantan Brothels Take Over Orangutans’ Habitat”. How could I not read The Bali Times today with a headline like that?
More headlines from The Bali Times, May 22-28, 2009:…Egg-Laden Motorbike in Scrambled Calamity “Eminent chicken-egg wholesaler Ketut Tutek lost all 2,836 ovums aboard his motorcycle…

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Mirror Mirror on the Wall…

Tweet Last night I came across Alexandra’s Goddess site. (www.mygoddesslife.com). I’d never been there before in spite of knowing Alexandra when she was in Bali. I went, curious as to how this Goddess, now living LA, had dealt publicly with the break up of her fiancee. Amazingly enough Alexandra kept right on being a goddess, […]

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Bali Spirit Festival Finale

point of the festival was not money. It was about bringing together some of the world’s top yoginis, sacred musicians, instructors, and gurus. It was about giving back to the community. About sharing the true essence of Balinese culture with a wider audience in order to positively impact the consciousness of people throughout the world.

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Bali Spirit Festival Rocks On – Day 3

Tweet SAHARADJA!!! I am SO a fan, as of last night. Truly amazing. The performance was a reminder of what I love and miss most about Istanbul, Turkey (my home of 3 yrs) and my home of origin in Northern California – music that celebrates life, that is a way of life, that connects at […]

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Bali Spirit Festival – Day 2

Tweet Day number two of Bali Spirit Festival 2009 is packed with classes and workshops led by healers, musicians, and instructors the likes of Swami Shankardev, Khalife, Patrick Creelman, Awahoshi, Rebecca Pflaum, Geoffrey Gordon, Nick Woolsey, Cudamani, Ravi Vempati, Ganga Giri, Akim Funk Buddha, and well, I could go on and on. It’s a metaphysical […]

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Reporting Live from the Bali Spirit Festival!

Tweet Tri Hita Karana 3 Balinese words that symbolize the heart of the Bali Spirit Festival: Harmony with God, Harmony in Community, Harmony with Nature It’s official. The 2nd annual Bali Spirit Festival is under way! www.balispiritfestival.com A vibrant, uplifting and diverse festival of yoga, dance and music which awakens and nourishes each individual’s potential […]

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Writing Workshop off the Coast of Turkey Aboard a Turkish Gulet! Sept.19-26, 2009

Tweet Hello Writers! We’re counting down to what promises to be another memorable writing workshop aboard the Kaptan Sevket on Turkey’s Turquoise coast September 19-26, 2009 with Larry Habegger, editor and co-founder of Travelers’ Tales Books. Aboard our classic Turkish wood sailing yacht, we’ll meet for instruction in the mornings after breakfast, partake in private […]

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Silent Sounds of Silence

Tweet Anyone out there know how to upload audio sounds? I borrowed several hours from sleep time last night to find software that would convert my wma files to mp3 for the Mac. Found one called Max and it converted them alright but then wouldn’t upload into my Word Press blog, I am assuming because […]

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Sound of Silence

Tweet This photo taken a few hours ago outside Bali Buddha where I stocked up on groceries in prep for tomorrow when the whole island of Bali goes into silence. It’s a holiday called Nyepi, celebrated the day before the Balinese New Year. No cars, no one allowed outside, in some villages no electricity. No […]

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Don’t miss this!

Tweet Do you have an impossible dream? Here’s how you can make it come true. Self help author, Barbara Sher, is having an online Twitter party beginning Monday, March 23; 8PM to Tuesday March 24; 8PM. The occasion? The 30-year anniversary of her bestselling book Wishcraft. You are invited! Once the party begins you can […]

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Philosophers’ Notes from Bali

The touchstone of my 3 months in Bali has been a discussion group I attend three times a week called Philosophers’ Notes. Brian Johnson from LA has been in Bali for six months writing Cliff Notes-ish summaries on 100 self-development books and in our group we discuss the big ideas he extracts from each one. He records our discussions and puts them on his website. http://philosophersnotes.com/

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A Fully Erect Appendix

We were on the neighbor’s ranch watching the annual gallop of the gauchos towards town when it was decided that I should see a doctor. I’d felt queasy all day, but, when it began to hurt to breathe, I knew that it was more than the bottle of Malbec wine we’d had the night before.

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What Economic Crisis? All the news that’s fit to print today in Bali.

But last night my curiosity got the best of me and I broke my fast to read the local Bali Advertiser. There was no news of the economic meltdown. What is making the headlines in Bali?

So what is making the headlines in Bali?
[caption id="attachment_744" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Balinese traditions still integral to life on the island"]Balinese traditions still integral to life on the island[/caption]

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Escape the World and Find Yourself

the ayurvedic massage not only puts me in a deep state of relaxation, but brings up insights and melts away negativity. I have long dreamed of living in Bali, and now here I am sitting smack dab in the middle of my dream my feet being washed lovingly, my shoulders being massaged looking out at what must be the most beautiful place on the planet. The world is my mirror. What I see, both good and bad, I create. It’s an analogy I’ve heard before. But it is not until this day during this massage at this moment as I sat here looking out at these scalloped mirrored rice paddies that the words take root.

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Entheos 01/09/09

Tweet Dec.12, 2009 in Ubud, Bali Do you find yourself waiting to do what you love until after you retire? After the children leave home? After you finish taking care of that other person’s needs? After, after, after… Are you living the Life Deferment Plan? You’re not alone. There is a way out. First, identify […]

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First night, Bali 12/12/08

Tweet My first night in Bali I struggle to stay awake at 8:12. Like a princess in some kind of eden, I sit perched on my large teak four poster bed, high above the turquoise pool below, the uplit banyon tree, the night sounds of the jungle. (I am the guest of Ketut, owner of […]

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Iraqi Refugees in Turkey

The 50 adults and children standing here tonight – next to all the belongings they will take with them contained in two bags per person, each weighing a maximum of 23 kilos – have waited for months, some for years for this day. It is 5 AM. They’ve been here since 2 AM after a six hour bus ride from various satellite cities throughout Turkey. Yet, they show no sign of exhaustion, only the palpable excitement of children the night before Christmas.

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